‘Tactical athletes’: the United States Paralympic Military Program and the mobilization of the disabled soldier/athlete

Batts, Callie; Andrews, David L.

doi:10.1080/17430437.2011.574350

Cited by 30 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 26 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Apart from the historically entrenched relationship between nation and the Paralympic movement through the rehabilitation of injured servicemen, the mediation of nationalism through the Paralympic games has been given very limited attention (see, Batts & Andrews, 2011;Bruce, 2014). This is surprising not only in the context of the rapid commodification of the Paralympics, the concomitant shift toward the dictates of the mega-event marketplace, the entry of C4 as broadcaster, and the associated shift toward athlete backstories focussing on heroic soldiers (often fast-tracked into para-sport through, for example the USA's Paralympic military programme and Battle Back programme in Great Britain), and life-changing trauma (Crow, 2014).…”

Section: The Paralympics Nation and Nationalismmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is surprising not only in the context of the rapid commodification of the Paralympics, the concomitant shift toward the dictates of the mega-event marketplace, the entry of C4 as broadcaster, and the associated shift toward athlete backstories focussing on heroic soldiers (often fast-tracked into para-sport through, for example the USA's Paralympic military programme and Battle Back programme in Great Britain), and life-changing trauma (Crow, 2014). Such representations position para-sport bodies as symbols of national, military, and sporting constituencies as a malleable site upon which contemporary cultural meanings of nation and the political and economic trajectories of neoliberalism are inscribed and mobilized (Batts & Andrews, 2011) 2 .…”

Section: The Paralympics Nation and Nationalismmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

(Re-)presenting the Paralympics: Affective Nationalism and the “Able-Disabled”

Pullen

Jackson

Silk

2019

Communication & Sport

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The relationship between media, sport, nations and nationalism is well established, yet, there is an absence of these discussions at the intersection of communication, Paralympics and disability studies. This omission is particularly significant considering the rapid commodification of the Paralympic spectacle, exacerbated by the entry of Channel 4 (C4) as the UK Paralympic rights holders, that has seen the games become an important site of disability (re-)presentation. In this article, we focus on the construction of national, normative, disabled bodies in Paralympic representation drawn from an analysis of three integrated datasets from Channel 4's broadcasting of the Rio 2016 Paralympics: interviews with C4 production and editorial staff; quantitative content analysis, and qualitative moving image analysis. We highlight the strategic approach taken by C4 to focus on successful medal winning athletes; the implications this has on the sports and disability classifications given media coverage; and the role of affective high-value production practices. We also reveal the commercial tensions and editorial decisions that broadcasters face with respect to which disabilities / bodies are made hyper-visible-and thereby those which are marginalized-as national disability sport icons that inculcate preferred notions of disability and the (re)imagined nation. 'hyper-visibility' of disability (Pullen et al., 2018), our focus herein is on the media's role in the social construction of disability and the production of Paralympic media texts as those through which political/ national discourse can be traced (Whannel, 2013). Critically engaging with representations of disability and disabled Paralympic bodies raises important questions, especially when held relational to a celebrated and 'normative' national body politic, one derived and cultivated from enhanced forms of neoliberal embodiment (sculpted, healthy, fit, sexual, heteronormative, and attractive) (Turner, 1996). With death, age and disability often positioned as the antithesis to such a normative body politic, media depictions of disability have, for the most part, drawn on a limited number of stereotypes, including: helpless, passive victims; vulnerable and pitiable and childlike dependents; and 'supercrips' predicated on inspirational stories of determination and personal courage to overcome adversity (Barnes & Mercer, 2010). Yet, the hyper-visibility and celebration of disability in and through the Paralympics that intends to provide a global sporting spectacle for the empowerment of disabled people for a more equitable society (See, Howe, 2008) could challenge such dominant narratives. In this paper, our interests centre on the very particular and specific construction of national, normative, disabled bodies in, and through, Paralympic representations. Building upon extant media and disability scholarship, we draw on three integrated datasets (interviews with production and editorial staff, quantitative content analysis, and qualitative moving image analysis) t...

show abstract

Section: The Paralympics Nation and Nationalismmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Paralympics Nation and Nationalismmentioning

confidence: 99%

(Re-)presenting the Paralympics: Affective Nationalism and the “Able-Disabled”

Pullen

Jackson

Silk

2019

Communication & Sport

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Kleiber and Hutchinson (1999, p. 136) have warned, nevertheless, that the "hero metaphor", which can offer a man "an alternative image of being-when he is no longer able to walk," lionizes a subject position which may be problematic for those who cannot draw on the physical and psychological resources and experiences resulting from a career in the armed forces or as an athlete. Moreover, the warrior label can also be seen as idealizing a masculinized, elite athleticism in soldiers who have suffered physical trauma at war (Batts & Andrews, 2011;Woodward, 2006). This is not to deny the inspirational qualities of Fleming's story, but rather to highlight that the role of hero has enabling and constraining features.…”

Section: Trading War Stories: Promoting Wounded (Sporting) Bodies Thrmentioning

confidence: 99%

“I Will. Protect this House:” Under Armour, Corporate Nationalism and Post-9/11 Cultural Politics

Weedon

2012

Sociology of Sport Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article explores the construction of U.S. nationalism through the branding strategies of Under Armour, a sportswear company which has achieved prominence in the U.S. marketplace and has a growing international profile. By examining their organizational synergies with the NFL, Zephyr technology, and the Wounded Warrior Project, and through a critical reading of the militaristic, philanthropic, nationalistic and masculine dimensions of their Freedom initiative, I illustrate how Under Armour has strategically sought to appeal to the heightened nationalistic tendencies of the post-9/11 United States. A central contention throughout the paper is that Under Armour’s brand development techniques, as mobilized predominantly through their website, offer important theoretical and empirical insights regarding the production, circulation, performance, and embodiment of post-9/11 cultural politics.

show abstract

“…World Series LLWS, Miracle, NASCAR, flags, presidents, opening pitches, Support the Troops NHL Tournaments (seeScherer and Koch 2010), the heroification of sporting/military celebrities (seeKelly 2013), the celebritisation of returning injured soldiers paraded as Paralympics (see e.g.,Batts and Andrews 2011;Bush et al 2013) or the general valorisation of the relationships between sport and the military (e.g., in popular programs such as Soccer Am on Sky Sports in the UK. Such examples also align cogently withCoakley and Pike's (2009) notion of the shifting orientations of commercialized sport, whereby heroism, drama, and the exploration of the body's potential to exceed its limits have become the accepted and normalized forms of broadcast.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%